You Found Me
by AshAsh17
Summary: After three months in captivity, Lois is finally rescued from white slavery by Clark. Can he help her rebuild her life and relationahips? Slightly tweaked Season 5; Lois was kidnapped from the strip club in "Exposed". Let me know if I should continue.
1. Found

Slightly tweaked Season 5 where Clark isn't able to save Lois from the men in the strip club in "Exposed". She has been missing since then and Clark has been relentless searches for her until finding her around the episode "Vengeance" about three months later. Let me know if I should continue with this idea.

**You Found Me – Chapter 1**

The house itself was out of place. A sprawled out, manicured mansion that lay smack-dab in any of the dangerous, crime-ridden neighborhoods of South L.A. should have been a dead giveaway to any involvement in the illegal drug industry or prostitution, but no investigations have been done; a warrant is needed to search any home or facility and Mr. Lyon is rather punctilious when it comes to the secrecy of his business. None of his prostitutes and dealers has ever been caught because they know of the horrors than Lyon can do to them, things that the police in the United States cannot legally do.

So the mansion remains untouched on this night, just like any other, as the wild, drunken party-goers laugh and holler almost louder than the blaring club music that nearly vibrates pictures off the walls. The downstairs pool, parlor, bar, kitchen, lounges, and in some cases the guest suites are completely packed, either with party staff, guests, including the supercilious Lyon, and the "evening's entertainment"; and yes, that means strippers and prostitutes. While there is enough noise radiating from downstairs to render most deaf, the second floor is blocked of during the event. No one, under no circumstances, is allowed to the upper floor, in the words of the two burly, black bodyguards at the foot of the stairs. So in comparison, the second floor is dead silent.

Except for one distinct, pitiful sound coming from one of the far corner bedrooms, furthest from the commotion downstairs, that is.

The bedroom is gilded with exquisite Spanish décor, including shiny tile floors, obnoxious feather art upon the walls, and a metal-framed, rounded King-sized bed. The couple upon the bed, at first glance, appears to be engaged in very passionate sex. With closer inspection, this assumption completely unravels.

The pale woman that lies pinned beneath the man has a black eye, a split lip, numerous cuts on her face and chest, and is bound to the metal headboard by her wrists. Her blonde hair fans out beneath her head on the silk sheets. Her ankles have been tied together at ninety degree angles of intersection, effectively spreading her thighs wide. The man lies encircled by her legs, making separation near impossible, rhythmically gyrating himself forcefully into her womb.

That's where the sound comes from.

With tears and mascara staining her face, nineteen year old Lois Lane whimpers every so often at his brutal violation of her body; she refuses to scream.

"_They win if you show any weakness, Lois."_ She tells herself in-between whimpers. _"Wait 'til he's distracted, and then go for it."_

Right as she thought it Aden- the Hispanic pimp that was currently raping her- pulled himself up into a semi-sitting position, dragging her hips with him, and began to mock her in rapid Spanish.

"_¿Usted cree que se salgan con la suya? ¿Eh?"_ He demanded harshly from above her.

Lois only glared in response, earning a fierce slap from Aden.

"Why can't you learn you place like all the other whores, eh? _Respóndeme, perra."_

Again, she only glared, distracting him from her left hand that was deftly slipping the rope off her wrist. He rolled his eyes at her display of defiance.

"_Ay-Ay-Ay-Ay! Puta de mierda." _He mumbled.

Her left hand snaked to the underside of the mattress where the dagger was hidden. She'd been raped at least seven times on this bed; she knew where everything was by heart.

"Lyon'd better fucking kill you soon." He said nonchalantly, maintaining his thrusting. "You're stubborn little white bitch; I may kill you soon out of irritation."

He flattened himself back to his original position, flat on top of her, face in between her bare breasts right as she slid the dagger out of its hiding place. She held it half-raised over him before speaking.

"Not if I kill you first." She said hoarsely.

He only chuckled at her statement, continuing to lick her chest and thrust her hips into his, not even bothering to look up.

Lois' blood boiled over in that moment and without hesitation, she plunged the dagger into his back with an angry shriek.

Aden gasped and let go of her, jerking his head up to face her in horror; he was greeted by her emotionless gaze and the bloody weapon being yanked out and then plunged again into his body. He shuddered and spat a mouthful of blood onto her torso, looking up at her a face again, this time with pure hatred and anger gleaming in his eyes.

"You goddamn bitch….Te voy a matar!" He growled, and his large hands latched painfully around her throat.

He was attempting to strangle her with all his might; she could feel bruises beginning to form from where his fingers clenched around her neck. Lois began to panic as she gasped for breath. She let out a strangled sob and in a frenzy, began stabbing his back again and again, hoping to kill him before he killed her.

The load music still blared from downstairs, the people directly below her clueless of the horror occurring in this secluded bedroom.

Blood was everywhere; on her arm, covering his back and the expensive sheets. He coughed more of it onto her body as she continued to blindly stab and his death grip on her neck slackened slightly. His breathing followed suit, becoming shallow and weak. Lois was sobbing blindly now, slowly continuing to mutilate her nearly dead assailant, only acutely aware of the sick squelching sound her stabs made on his skin.

And then it was over.

Aden's right hand slid from her throat, and although the left remained firmly in place, she could now breathe properly. Her sobbing continued weakly. Blood was smeared into her hair and on her face. She could feel the blood that was now caked on the inside of her legs and on her chest and abdomen. The stickiness of it nearly made her vomit. Her whole body shook something horrible and no matter how hard she willed herself, she could not make her fingers peel off the handle of the dagger. Lois tried to shift her bound legs and make his corpse slip off of her but was met with stabbing pain and whimpered loudly; his erection was still firmly inside her. Her head flopped back in defeat and almost to highlight her despair and hopelessness, the music below halted.

Tears flowed freely from Lois' bruised eyes now; she only stared blankly at the crystal chandelier overhead, her head swirling with emotions.

Lois was not upset over Aden's death. She was mourning the loss of her innocence; nineteen years old and she was already a murderer. She had killed a man in cold blood. There was no turning back, no salvation for her soul. She, Lois Joanne Lane, was a killer.

She gulped to stifle another wave of mindless sobs and a waterfall of tears. It came out as weak gasps, pathetic and helpless sounds that she did not know she was capable of making.

For a split second, Lois heard heavy footsteps pounding down the hallway before the door was flung violently open.

She didn't even look to see who it was; she knew it was one of the muscular black guards that liked to beat her, she just knew it. Lois merely continued counting the crystals dangling from the chandelier, waiting for the man to strike her like he always did.

He didn't. The man walked hesitantly over to the scene of the crime and knelt down by her head.

Lois closed her eyes tightly, beginning to cry again; all she could do was wait for the inevitable beating to begin.

The man spoke, with the familiar voice of an angel, making her eyes snap open.

"Lois? Please… can you hear me?" Clark Kent whispered to her and her only.

She rolled her head towards him to look at his face; it had been at least a month since she'd seen him. Same hair, same eyes, same concerned expression; the only difference was his face. Tears stained his cheeks and there were bags under his eyes. Lois broke into uncontrollable sobs once she saw his tears. If he could, then she would too.

He gently grabbed her face with both hands and held her so close that their foreheads were touching. He gulped back his anguish, trying to be strong for her.

"You're allowed to cry." He told her soothingly "You're safe now."

His words didn't register. She only sobbed and repeated the same phrase over and over again.

"You found me. You found me. You found me…"


	2. Weak

Thanks for the positive feedback thus far. Not gonna lie, I was expecting a controversial whiplash for writing about something so violent and depressing. The sad thing is, though, some people are subjected to that kind of mistreatment and I hope no one takes offense from Chapter One.

**Chapter 2**

Chloe sat cross-legged on her very pink bed, peering at Lana over her Calculus book and listening intently as her friend vented to her. Lana clearly had a lot on her mind, as she had ranted on for nearly ten minutes, gesturing animatedly the whole time. The dorm's heater was broken so they both sat in their respective spots bundled up on warm winter clothing to avoid freezing in the frigid night.

"… and I know that he just lost his dad, but I mean, I've gone through that too; with BOTH of my parents. Why isn't he talking with me instead of being all surly and silent? I'm not trying to downgrade the tragedy or anything, but if he talked to me I think it would be a huge help." Lana finished rapidly as she wrapped a hair tie around the end of her newly braided hair.

She smoothed it over and waited patiently for Chloe's input. The blonde merely stared at her with raised eyebrows.

"I'm done now." Lana added hastily.

Chloe smiled and dropped the Calculus book along with her assignment onto the floor.

"Lana, have you even mention half of this stuff to Clark, or am I the first one to hear this." She asked.

"No. I don't want to say the wrong thing and make the distance between us even worse. Our relationship is strained already." Lana confessed.

Chloe took her hand reassuringly.

"You have to at least try Lana. You won't know until you try."

Lana relaxed slightly and smiled back at her best friend. She opened her mouth to speak, but Chloe's cell phone going off interrupted her. Chloe pulled it from her pocket and checked the caller ID before showing it to Lana with a smirk.

"Hey, what do you know? Just the person we wanted to talk to. I'll put it on speaker phone so we both can talk to him."

Lana nodded as Chloe pressed the "answer" key and set the phone down on the sheets.

"Hey there, Clark! We were just-" Chloe began eagerly but halted at the sobbing that could be heard on the other line. Clark's voice sounded next.

"I found her, Chloe." He stated breathlessly.

"Found who? What are you talking about?" Chloe was partially distracted by the distressed sounds in the background. Lana's eyes had widened in fear.

"I found Lois." Was all he said after a brief pause.

Something snapped inside her head. Suddenly, the room seemed 100 degrees warmer.

"Is that her?" Chloe half-screamed into the receiver. "What's wrong with her?"

"Just a jet or a plane to Los Angeles as soon as possible; I don't care how just do it. We'll be at the Cedar-Sinai Hospital. Hurry."

And then he was gone. The cryptic message yanked Lana out of her shock faster than Chloe and she dashed to her bag to find her phone. Chloe merely sat there dazed for a few seconds longer, her head clouded with terrified thoughts. Her cousin was alive, but broken. She had never heard Lois cry like that. She was the strong one. Lana's phone ringing snapped her out of it. Her head shot up to look at her friend suspiciously.

"Calling Lex?" She hissed in accusation.

Lana looked taken aback by her reaction before gathering herself again.

"Yes. Who else do we know with a private jet?"

Chloe nodded, even though she knew that wasn't the only reason, and went back to her musings.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Gingerly, Clark Kent had taken Lois' shaking yet stiff left hand and pried her fingers from the handle of the knife still protruding from Aden's back.

"It's okay," He whispered soothingly to her as she hiccupped silently. "Let it go."

Once her fingers were freed, he clutched her hand in his protectively and leaned over to untie her right hand. He winced at the blood the rope had drawn around her wrist but didn't say anything. He helped her push her body up onto her elbows in a half sitting position, making sure she was strong enough to hold herself up before shifting to the foot of the bed to free her feet; the pimp's head lay heavily upon her chest.

"No Clark." Lois begged pathetically as he unwound the ropes from around her ankles.

"You can't see me this way. Please…"

"We have to get you out of here." He tried to reason with her; it was taking all of his willpower to not shred the ropes and super speed her back home to Kansas. She couldn't know about him yet.

Her legs were free now, but she was too emotionally drained to care about that. Clark could not see her like this. At least with the body on top of her, she wasn't completely naked. Removing it would change that, leaving her completely exposed. Lois was at her weakest now and it scared her. He firmly grasped the now cold corpse and was preparing to rip the stiff mass off of her when she gasped loudly.

"CLARK STOP‼"

He froze and looked up expectantly, eyebrows furrowed.

"Be… be gentile." She whispered, her cheeks beginning to blush in humiliation as she spoke again.

"He-he-he's still inside me."

The shame on Lois' face almost shattered his heart into a million pieces. His face softened as he examined her further.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of Lois." He stated calmly, with conviction.

She only shook her head in response, daring to hope that it was true. Once the heavy body had been removed from her torso, Lois rolled onto her side, shielding her bruised breasts and bloodied nether region from his view. The action was too quick for her already pulsing nausea; this and the irony scent of the blood was all it took for her to finally vomit onto the floor. Clark was there in an instant, holding her hair back and supporting her with an arm around her waist. Lois was still gagging, long after the sick had stopped splattering on the floor; the dry heaves lasted for minutes. When it was over, Lois had no more tears left to spill. She hung limply in Clark's big arms, covered in dried blood, completely defeated. He gently laid her back on the soiled bedspread, completely exposed to him in everyway. Clark removed the black jacket of his tux and deftly wrapped her in it, giving her the first real modest clothing she'd had in months. She didn't protest as he lifted her up bridal style, the blood on her legs staining his white shirt. This worried Clark to no end. He was horrified by the nebulousness of her eyes; the fight was gone from her.

"Lois," He began pitifully. "You can't give up. You can't let them win. What do you need? I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe, just tell me."

She looked at him quizzically before resting her head peacefully on his shoulder, accepting his offer.

"Get me out of here." She murmured. That was all he needed to hear.

In an instant, they were downstairs in the scattered remains of the drug and sex party; the cops that Clark had called were beginning to arrive and guests were frantically trying to escape arrest. In one of the Koi ponds in the Lounge, lay Lyon, completely hammered and bleeding from his temple. When Clark saw him, he shoved past panicked guests, many who cringed away upon seeing the bloody girl in his arms, towards the man he hated more than anything; the man who had nearly destroyed his best friend. Even hammered, Lyon knew who he was before Clark stopped in front of him. His eyes were wide with fear as Clark towered over him. He smirked weakly after a while, throwing Lois a hungry look, and downed the tequila shot clutched in his hand before speaking.

"Vat are you doing vith my girl, eh?"

Only Lois snuggling closer to him stopped Clark from crushing the man's body right then and there.

"She's not your girl." He yelled harshly. It took him a few seconds to calm down before speaking again.

"This isn't over." He muttered. "I'm coming for you very soon."

Clark left him there, amongst the fish, and walked calmly out to seek medical help for his Lois.


	3. Martha Knows

"_I find the way that SV glossed over what could have happened to Lois in "Exposed" and glossed over the fact that Lois was almost raped in "Scion" FAR more disturbing than this fic. Its an emotional fic to read, but very engrossing. Looking forward to see where you go with this."_

Truer words have not been spoken…

**Chapter 3**

The four of them sat silently through most of the jet ride. It wasn't a contented, pleasant silence, though. An awkward and restless journey had befallen them. Lex and Lana sat next to each other on a white futon towards the back of the jet's lounge, having short, periodic conversations and sharing long intense stares. Lex had sweet-talked her into drinking bourbon with him, even though he was fully aware that she was underage. Chloe watched them in disgust from Martha's side at her laptop. She had suspected his intentions from the second he agreed to fly them across the country for Lois and Clark; it was well known that he disliked the both of them. Peering out the window, she deduced they were probably only inside the boundaries of New Mexico or Arizona based on the arid terrain. Sighing, she leaned back and began to watch Martha type at a pace that rivaled Clark's super speed. She had grown tired of Lex and Lana's subtle flirting a long time ago. Chloe's eyebrows furrowed after watching the progress of the text in the novel-length E-Mail she had been composing for quite a while, her reporter's curiosity kicking in.

"Mrs. Kent, what's that even for?" She finally asked.

Martha jerked her head up in surprise and turned to look at Chloe, as though unsure if she was being spoken to.

"Oh, it's to my publicist and event coordinator." She muttered, resuming her frantic typing. "We'll need to have a press conference on Lois' rescue very soon."

Chloe nodded in understanding, but the taller, balder member of the party of two behind them heard the statement and spoke up.

"What exactly does finding Lois have to do with your Senatorial progress, Mrs. Kent?" Lex inquired nonchalantly, not even turning to face them directly.

Martha's fist clenched at his ignorance and arrogance. Chloe reached out and clasped her shaking hand, effectively calming her enough to speak.

"Because Lex, 'Operation Locate Lois' was a huge part of Jonathon's campaign after she was taken. We received massive donations from the public for the cause. Well, we've found her. The public should know. It'll give them hope and Jonathon will be remembered not only as a great leader, but a great father." Martha stated proudly in one breath.

Lex didn't respond. He merely nodded and poured himself and Lana some more alcohol. Martha narrowed her eyes and turned back to her message, but Chloe continued staring for a split second longer; long enough to see Lana smile affectionately at him and sip her bourbon.

Her disgust in her friend reached a new height. Chloe bit her lip to keep from shouting and turned away from the not-so-subtle flirting between the two. She would deal with them later; right now, Lois was the one in need of her attention.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Chloe Sullivan was only midway through asking an orderly what room her cousin was in when Lois' bloodcurdling scream pierced her eardrums. Lana's beaded clasp fell from her hands in shock. Martha whirled around, frantically trying to locate the source of the scream. For the first time that night, Lex's stoic face broke into one of mild concern.

"Is that her?" Lana asked in bewilderment after a brief pause.

Chloe didn't answer. She began sprinting down the long hallway, in the direction of her panicking cousin.

"GET HIM AWAY FROM ME‼" The terrified shrieks were getting clearer and were quickly joined by another familiar voice.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?" Clark Kent's furious voice boomed to her left. Chloe quickly pivoted in the direction of his voice on her heel, the footsteps of three others not far behind her.

Lois' room was not hard to locate from there; at the end of the hallway, a bewildered doctor stood in the door of one of the rooms, Clark's face inches from his. Chloe nearly halted and wanted to run away when she saw his face. It was red and his expressions were twisted with anger.

"Sir, I was only examining her for injuries. You must understand…."

The other three had arrived by her side and stopped running too.

"Are you aware of the circumstances for which she was brought here?" Clark interrupted harshly.

"Yes, but-"

"Then why in the hell did you think it was smart to walk into this room and stick your hand between her legs? Huh?" Clark was shaking violently now.

"She consented to the examination. We just want to make sure the assault didn't cause any internal bleeding or damage." The doctor replied calmly, clearly trying to get Clark to cool down.

There were several still moments of silence. The tension between the two men could have been sliced with a butter knife. Martha took a few steps towards them at the sound of Lois' whimpers from the room.

"She consented to a female doctor." Clark corrected. "But it doesn't matter now; get out of here and don't send anyone to this room until your bedside manner has improved."

The doctor did as ordered without protest, striding quickly away from the scene. A concerned nurse nearby saw Lois in the room and moved to go help her. Clark stood firmly in the doorway, blocking her path with his arms.

"I said go away." He snarled. The nurse backed off, walking down the hall towards Chloe, Lana, Lex and Martha. She ignored them and turned into an office nearby.

As Clark turned back to the room, he saw them standing a short distance away, frozen in shock, and acknowledged them with a nod before going back inside. Chloe and Martha were the first to react, taking large steps to reach the room where the distressed sobs echoed from. They got there at the same time, nearly gasping in unison at what they saw. Lois and Clark lay sprawled up against the hospital bed, her smaller body being cradled by his larger one. She clutched onto his shoulders as he held her legs in his lap with one hand and her head up against his chest with the other. Her right hand was oozing blood where the IV had been ripped out. The hospital gown was coming undone, falling to expose her shaking shoulders.

"He touched me. He touched me. He-he-he was gonna h-h-hurt me." Her voice shook with sobs; Lana felt sick just watching her suffer.

"No." Clark murmured soothingly. "No one will ever hurt you again. I promise."

Martha gulped and a tear fell from her eyes. Chloe grabbed the two other women gently, pulling them with her outside to give them some privacy. Lex followed suit after a brief delay, staring transfixed as Lois' whimpers died down for a second longer before leaving too, smirking slightly. No one bothered them for the next two hours.

-X-X-X-X-X-

"Clark?" Martha shook her son's shoulder gently, hoping to rouse him from his sleep.

He had fallen asleep next to Lois' hospital bed, head resting on the edge of it on top of the white sheets. She chanced a glance up at Lois, who she now saw as a daughter. She lay curled up on her side in her sleep, arms crossed over her chest as if to protect from an attack. Her hair had not yet dried from the bath the doctors had insisted she take, and it draped heavily over her shoulders, dampening the light green hospital gown. A spongy brace had been wrapped around her neck, a safety cushion in case the attempted strangulation had caused stress fractures in her neck. All the nasty cuts on her face had been covered and cleaned, with the exception of her ugly, purple black eye. Martha shuddered and went back to trying to wake Clark.

"Clark, sweetie, wake up." She repeated to him, now with desperation in her voice. He jolted awake after she shook him harder.

"Hi, sweetie." She breathed a sigh of relief as Clark just gaped at her in confusion. "How are you?"

He sat up slowly not taking his eyes off of his mother.

"Is something wrong, Mom?" He asked carefully.

Martha bit her lip before continuing.

"You don't have to tell me the whole story, but I need to know what happened to her." She whispered. "I heard what the doctors said. Hardly any of that blood was hers. And I saw them give her that pill. He said it would, 'make it go away'. Please, sweetheart, just tell me why she's here and where she's been these last three months; maybe I can help her get better."

Martha had started to plead at that point, her eyes getting red with emotion. Clark glanced behind his mother; Chloe and Lana were both sound asleep on each other's shoulders. Lex, however, was missing entirely from the room; probably got a call from the Luthorcorp office and had to step out. Clark sighed and rubbed his face, debating on how much he should actually tell his mom. He came to the conclusion that, of all people, Martha should know; she had become Lois' surrogate mother now. He took a deep breath before looking up to his mom, dead set on being completely honest.

"When I found Lois, Mom, she was in a brothel and there was a dead, naked man on top of her."

Martha flinched in disgust. Clark continued after a pause.

"Lois was also naked; she had been raped. And I don't think it was the first time either. She's been held there against her will for over three months. That was why the doctor's gave her that pill. It's to keep her from getting pregnant."

Martha made no move to indicate that she had heard him. She only stared blankly at Lois' prone form on the bed. Her hand stretched out and rubbed Lois' exposed shoulder. Clark did the same after a second, placing his hand over his mother's.

"Is there anything else?" She gulped, fearful of the answer.

Clark paused before answering her.

"Yes. Lois killed the man that was raping her. She was covered in his blood."

Martha jerked her hand away from Lois in shock.

"Why? How could she?" Was all she could muster.

"He'd done it before, Mom; she'd had enough."

His mother only shook her head before silently stretching her hand back to Lois' prone form, this time stroking her damp hair.

"My poor baby…. My poor, poor baby…." Martha cooed sadly.

"You understand," Clark said suddenly, glancing back at the two sleeping girls, "that you can't tell anyone about this? At least not until Lois is ready for it."

Martha nodded.

"Yes, sweetie; not a soul."

Clark squeezed his mother's other hand affectionately and flopped his head back onto the edge of the mattress.

"Thank you." He muttered sleepily.

"No problem." His mother replied sweetly.

They sat like that for a while, completely unaware that a second person had been standing by the door the entire time, listening to the confession. He smirked craftily at the news before slowly turning back towards the lobby to think for a while.


	4. Murderer

_Dear Kellyj,_

_You really should put a warning on your user profile that says "Rude and ignorant". Everyone has the right to have an opinion, but no one has the right to flaunt and patronize it as if it's the only one that matters._

_Reading the rating should tell you all you need to know about the contents of this story. Context clues, Honey; use some common sense._

_And get off the internet. Judging by your poor grammar, English is not your first language and your time will be better spent learning the language, not rifling through searching for and meticulously grousing at other people's work._

_Have a nice day,_

_Ashley Nicole_

**Chapter 4**

Only one day later and everything had changed so fast.

Lois was home now. Not the grimy and cramped quarters she'd been kept in for three months; no, she was at her real home now. One look at her, and anyone unfamiliar with her ordeal would assume everything about her was completely normal.

She sat at the dining table in the Kent's farm house, the familiar scent of apple pie persistent in her nose. She was clad in a simple, white cotton dress that stopped just above her knees when sitting. It had long sleeves with cufflinks and ruffles down the front from her chest to her waist. A heart-shaped blue pendent rested on her collarbone. Beneath the table, her feet rhythmically tapped, clicking loudly as the white flats came in contact with the hardwood floors beneath her. Lois' blonde hair had been braided into a ponytail by her cousin earlier that day and it flowed gracefully down her back; a white headband with a white flower on the right side was perched behind her ears. Her neck brace had been removed upon checking out of the hospital. There were bruises, but no broken bones. She barely had any make up on. Only concealer and blush had been applied to her face to hide the many scars that crossed it.

To an outsider, all was well.

That was not the case.

Lois had been staring at the same spot on the wall, deep in thought, since Martha and Chloe had left to set things up. Her hands had a death grip on the hem of the dress, making sure that it didn't shift to reveal too much skin; she didn't want to be thought of as a slut. Her posture was stiff and rigid. She had toyed nervously with her hair every now and then, wishing she had access to some scissors. Her thoughts were restless, rattling around in her brain nonstop. Every minute or so, she swallowed the lump in her throat that kept persistently returning the more she thought. Lois bit her lip; she had decided that day that she was done crying and feeling sorry for herself.

Clark, after several minutes of inner turmoil, finally worked up enough courage to descend the stairs into the room where she sat. He was dressed in a business suit, complete with a tie and cufflinks. His normally unruly hair had been lightly gelled back for the occasion, but his demeanor still reeked of flannel and farm animals. He watched her from a distance for a minute or so before speaking at last.

"Lois?"

She turned her head slowly to him, breaking her focus from the wall, still chewing on her lower lip. Her foot had stopped tapping. She was a vision of white, successfully radiating her stolen innocence.

"Is it okay if I sit with you?" He asked carefully.

She thought for a moment then nodded.

"Yes."

Clark barely concealed his shock as he walked to her and sat down next to her. She hadn't spoken to anyone since yesterday in the hospital. A contented silence had fallen over them, only broken by the faint ticking of the clock in the kitchen. Lois reached up and twirled her hair again after a few minutes, drawing Clark's attention to it. While Chloe had done a very nice job, it was very un-Lois-like.

"I like what Chloe did with your hair." Clark said quietly, breaking the silence. He felt the need to talk to her, get her to open up, and somehow, he knew she would be honest with him.

"I want to cut it off." Lois murmured nonchalantly.

"Why?" Clark asked.

There was no alarm in his voice, only patient interest.

"If I look innocent, no one will want me." She answered bitterly.

He rested his chin in his hand, observing her before replying.

"Not all men are awful. Look at me; I think I'm pretty wonderful, don't you Lois?"

She smiled weakly, still studying her hair.

"You don't count." She looked up just in time to catch his taken aback expression. "You're a dorky farm boy, Clark."

"I'm so hurt." He retorted sarcastically.

"The truth hurts, Smallville."

Clark smiled triumphantly; old Lois was starting to come out from her hiding place.

Lois stopped playing with her hair and set her left hand in her lap, the right on the table near Clark's hand. They were almost touching. Lois abruptly broke the silence after a few moments.

"Where's Dad?"

Clark frowned in thought. Had her father already been contacted?

"Uh, I think my mom called the General on the way to…."

"No, Clark, not my father. Where's our dad? I haven't seen him all day."

It was almost as if his heart had plummeted into his stomach; she had no idea of Jonathon's passing. He didn't know why, but he had assumed she'd been told already.

"Is he out organizing this whole conference?" Her question interrupted his frantic thoughts.

He turned to face her. His face must have gone pale and reflected his despair, because Lois had flinched away involuntarily at the sight of it.

He gulped and answered.

"Dad had a heart attack, on the night of the election. I'm sorry Lois. He's gone."

A lone tear slid down her cheek as he finished. He had expected a cascade of them to follow and was ready to gather her into a hug if necessary. Lois only sniffled and wiped it from her face with her shaking hand, looking away as she did so. She sniffled again before looking up and grasping his hand, eyes swimming with sadness.

"Clark, I am so sorry." She barely managed to get the words out.

"He was your dad, too." He told her affectionately.

Lois let out a sob before continuing.

"Don't say things like that, Clark. I'm about to lose all self-control as it is."

"You're allowed to grieve." Clark informed her calmly.

"Not now." She wiped her eyes. "Later; we have that stupid press conference to deal with."

As if on cue, the pager Martha had left him buzzed annoyingly in his pant's pocket. Clark glared at it before looking up at Lois' red eyes.

"Ready for this?" He asked.

"Ready." Lois responded confidently.

They stood at the same time and left, still holding each other's hands for strength, marched out the door to his truck.

-X-X-X-X-X-

All eyes were on her. All whispers were about her. All cameras were held at the ready, should she choose to break down and cause a scene. All the newspapers would want that for her front page.

Lois was somehow miraculously ignoring it all as she sat on a pedestal before them, clutching Clark's right hand firmly. Senator Martha Kent- it was going to take her a while to get used to that title- had arranged her emergency press conference to be held in the Talon coffee shop on Main Street, knowing that other than the farm, it was the only place she felt comfortable in. A temporary stage had been set up where the counter would be, elevated over the section for the avid and gossip-hungry journalists. Chloe, Lois, and Clark sat-in that order- in three red chairs placed just to the right of the wooden podium that Martha was currently standing behind as she addressed the crowd. Lois had stopped listening a long time ago, only focused on her own steady breathing; it was the only way for her to remain calm. Well, that and holding Clark's hand. That had a powerful calming sensation of its own. She just tuned in towards the end of Martha's speech, at the part where she had begun to warn the press against pestering her for answers.

"Miss Lane is not ready to comment on the subject of her captivity, but when she is, we will choose which source to disclose the information to. Thank you all."

As she finished, the room exploded with questions.

"Where was Miss Lane taken to?"

"Why was she allowed into that club?"

"What all happened to her?"

Clark and Chloe glared angrily at all of the reporters as they barked their inquiries. Martha ignored them all and turned back to Lois with a reassuring smile. Lois smiled back until she heard a familiar voice boom the most dreaded question from the back?

"Why won't Miss Lois Lane admit to committing first-degree murder?" Lex Luthor challenged.

Dead silence descended upon the room. Chloe's face turned deathly white and she stared in disbelief at her cousin. The sea of scribers parted as they all turned to face him, shocked at the new revelation. He strode arrogantly part them to the front of the room, mock curiosity on his face. Clark and Martha were pleading silently with their eyes for him to not continue.

"We're waiting, Lois." He said quietly, ignoring them completely.

Lois shook in anger and complete terror as she glared daggers back at him.

"I didn't." She finally managed to utter, quiet but confident. "I didn't."

"That's funny, because Mr. Kent seems to think otherwise." He held up a tape recorder.

"Got it all on tape."

The remaining Kents had mini heart attacks of their own. Lois ripped her hand out of Clark's, tears of betrayal starting to flow from her eyes.

"You told him." There was no doubt in her voice.

"No, Lois, I didn't…"

"He has it on tape." She cut him off, standing up as she spoke.

"I don't know how he man-…" Clark tried to explain to her, but she had reached her breaking point.

She turned to face him, the complete hopeless plainly evident on her face.

"HOW COULD YOU?" She screamed her demand into his face, causing the audience to flinch back.

Chloe stood up and walked over to her cousin, touching her shoulders in comfort. Lois only pushed her arms forcefully away.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" The tears were flowing freely now.

"ALL OF YOU JUST GO AWAY!"

Lois jumped down from the stage, losing a show in the process. She shoved anyone out of her way as she made a beeline for the stairs to the apartment upstairs. Once there, she raced to the top, quickly opening the door and closing herself within. She made sure it was securely locked before collapsing against the wall and curling up within herself. Downstairs, Clark stepped down from the stage so that he was face to face with Lex, who he now hated more than anything else. Lex only smirked coldly.

"Do I have your attention?"

"Yes." Was Clark's growling response.

"Good. We need to have a talk. My place at seven; do try to make it."

With that, he coldly smirked yet again and turned on his heel, making his usual dramatic exit. All stared in complete awe; not a single soul had even considered to whip out a camera during that entire scene, despite their journalistic instincts.

-X-X-X-X-X-

"_After all that you put me through,  
>You think I'd despise you,<br>But in the end I wanna thank you,  
>'Cause you've made me that much <em>_**stronger**__.__"_

-Christina Aguilera, Fighter_  
><em>


	5. Unfair Ultimatum

"_I didn't mean to end his life_

_I know it wasn't right_

_I can't even sleep at night_

_Can't get it off my mind_

_I need to get out of sight_

_Before I end up behind bars"_

_ -Rihanna, Man Down_

**Chapter 5**

Clark Kent, a normally mild-mannered and patient person, had all but lost his temper with Lex at this point.

He'd been offered a glass of Bourbon.

He refused politely.

He'd been presented with a spot upon a luxurious leather loveseat to be seated in.

He also refused- although with a more gruff voice- and remained standing in the doorway.

It wasn't until Lex tried to strike up a conversation about the dark and rainy weather that had been plaguing Lowell County for several weeks that Clark finally snapped at him.

"Lex, what do you want?" He barked harshly.

The younger Luthor turned slowly away from the window that he had been gesturing out of to study Clark's expression carefully before answering slowly.

"I only seek to strike a proposition with you, Clark." He drawled, pouring himself some alcohol.

Clark blinked before narrowing his eyes at his former friend suspiciously.

"Right. And your strategy is to blindly accuse my traumatized best friend of first-degree murder? Work on your delivery next time, Lex."

He turned to leave, his already frazzled nerves escalating to further irritation at this man's attempt to divide Lois and him. Right before he super sped out, he heard the faint sound of his voice coming from inside Lex's study. It brought him to an abrupt halt.

"_She was covered in his blood… Lois killed the man…There was a dead man on top of her… She was covered in his blood…_"

He closed his eyes in defeat. Lex hadn't been lying about the recording. He gathered his dignity before turning back and marching back to face Lex. He stopped in the middle of the room, right in front of the handsome wooden desk. The smirk that was plastered across his face was almost his undoing, but somehow Clark managed to maintain a firm grip on his fading self-control. The tape still played, over and over again and Lex only stared him down with raised eyebrows, challenging him to speak or defend himself. He finally did after a few deep breaths.

"You can turn that off now." Clark spat. "I think both of us know the words by heart at this point."

A faint click and the recording stopped, and Lex dropped it unceremoniously onto his desk.

Silence plagued them for a few eternal seconds.

"It's interesting that you won't even defend yourself; you're confirming Lois' crime with your silence."

"It's interesting that you think tampering with potential evidence won't affect you at all. That's felony, Lex. You're looking at several years in prison when you get caught." Clark retorted crisply.

Lex narrowed his eyes and began twirling his paperweight nonchalantly.

"I don't know what you're talking about Clark. The recording doesn't lie."

He leaned forward and rested his palms on the edge of the desk, glaring into Lex's eyes menacingly. The bald man was not fazed by this bold display.

"That's funny, because in that particular conversation, I specifically stated that she was defending herself from a sexual assault. My mother will be able to back me up on that one."

Lex chuckled lightly, causing Clark's already tight grip on the edge of the desk to reach a splintering strength. He set the paper weight down and interlocked his fingers in his lap, looking up at Clark as if he were a child who had just asked why the sky is blue.

"Money talks, Clark." He explained coolly. "No matter what you and your precious family- what's left of it anyway- can matter scrape up to discredit me and defend Lois, I will win. Always."

Never before in his life had someone's arrogance made Clark so infuriated. Lex continued after he felt the pause had lasted long enough.

"However…. I would be willing to retract today's statement and completely erase this whole mess…. under one condition."

"Name it." He had barely let Lex finished before speaking.

Lex took his time responding, taking a swig of alcohol and swiveling back and forth in his large leather chair.

"We can save Lois the mental strain and humiliation of a full-on court trail…. only if you share your secret and cooperate with me."

Clark's blood ran cold and he stood straight up, releasing the desk; there were dents in the shape of fingers in the expensive wood. He only stared blankly at his enemy, having the mother of all inner turmoils ricocheting around in his brain. If he told Lex, Lois could actually rebuild her life and not have to face the possibility of life in prison, but there would be no Clark there to guide and help her. Lex would certainly take him away to be experimented on. But if he didn't, she'd most likely rot away unjustly in federal prison. The debate lasted an eternity inside his brain before he voiced his decision.

"We're going to fight you Lex, and we're going to win; because we are fighting for what's right. Your money won't do you any good this time." He snarled defiantly.

Lex seemed to be waiting for Clark to change his mind, as his expression remained a cocky mask of arrogance. Clark, having no more to say to this man, turned to leave, this time for good. In true Luthor fashion, Lex decided that he had to have the last word.

"Oh well, I suppose you can visit that bitch on a biweekly basis at the Kansas State Penitentiary. Tell her I said hi."

He was ignored by a preoccupied Clark, who was wide-eyed and horrified at the decision he had made just seconds ago. He waited until he was far enough away before super speeding to the Talon.

-X-X-X-X-X-

He sat in his truck in front of the coffee shop, head on the steering wheel, just thinking endlessly about the situation he had put his friend in. It was already dark out and below freezing, but that made no difference to him. Nothing moved Clark for the twenty minutes that he sat parked out in the freezing Kansas winter, earning strange looks from people entering and leaving the shop. It wasn't until the passenger door opened and shut abruptly and a sweet voice sounded to his right that Clark shifted his eyes from the dashboard to the new occupant of the truck.

"Good, you got my text." Lana stated matter-of-factly as she dropped her purse onto the floorboard and sipped her large latte.

Clark just nodded, although he had no idea what message she was referring to; as of late ,his phone was still lost in the deep depths of his room.

"Let's get out of here and go home… or maybe out to eat." Lana continued as she checked her watch.

"Four hours with Sergeant Self-Pity really takes it out of you."

Clark sat up abruptly, raising his eyebrows at her as she applied Chap Stick.

"Excuse me?" He inquired, even though he knew full well what she was talking about.

"Oh, it's Lois. She locked herself in the apartment and had a meltdown after that rally thing. It was ridiculous." She shrugged it off as no big deal, like if her little sister had fallen down on the playground and scraped her knee.

Clark just stared in disbelief at her, almost refusing to believe she had just said such a thing.

"Lana," He started calmly. "She was raped."

Lana just looked at him, as if he had yet to make his point.

"Repeatedly." He added, raising his voice.

"She needs to get over it." Lana muttered coldly.

Clark sat back and studied her in disgust, crossing his arms over his chest, still clad in his business suit from earlier.

"Turn the car on already so we can go; it's freezing in here." Her teeth chattered and she took another gulp of the coffee for emphasis.

She didn't get it; that was all it took for Clark to finally lose the patience that he had been containing all day.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." He stated.

She looked up at him, frowning in confusion.

"Whatever for? That's why you're here, to take me back to your place."

It was as if he was obliged to drive her wherever she desired.

"No, I'm here to be with Lois." He corrected.

"But I'm your girlfriend. You're supposed to spend time with me."

"And you're supposed to be supporting and comforting your emotionally distressed best friend but here –"

"She's NOT my best friend." Lana snapped. "She was raped. Boo-hoo; it's time for her to move on already. My parents died when I was three and-"

"If I recall correctly," Clark interrupted. "You're still not over their deaths either. It's been, what, sixteen years now?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, furious for being called on for her flaming hypocrisy.

"She's not my best friend." She muttered defiantly.

He was done with her after that final comment.

"And you're not my girlfriend." He quipped as he pulled the keys to the truck from his pocket and tossed them at her. Lana quickly reacted and caught them, but her face turned to shock as he opened the door to the truck and stepped out.

"Where are you going?" She demanded loudly, flinging her own door open and banging it on a Pruis parked in the spot next to them.

"To be with 'Sergeant Self-Pity', as you like to call her." He answered back as he walked around the truck to the front doors of the Talon.

"Drive yourself wherever you want; the farm, Met U, I don't care. Don't call or come back until you've grown up enough to stop being so self-centered."

He was halfway in the door when she vulgarly replied.

"FUCK YOU, CLARK KENT!" Everyone inside the restaurant turned in shock to face the doors.

"Sorry about that." He apologized sheepishly to all who could hear; the red Ford could be heard speeding off down Main Street before the doors completely closed.

Sighing and gripping the guardrail, Clark ascended the staircase up to the apartment above the service counter. He had just raised his hand to knock when the door flew open and a woman with short blonde hair wrapped him in a tight hug. Clark smiled, his mood lightening already as he hugged Chloe back. They stood there in a close embrace before she spoke, in a voice that sounded nothing like Chloe's.

"Thank you for doing that. She was being a real bitch." Lois murmured into his shoulder.

Clark froze and pulled her away from him. He examined her at arm's length with sad eyes. Her beautiful long blonde hair was gone. It stopped just above her shoulders and was half clipped back out of her face; it was actually shorter than Chloe's trademark bob haircut. All of her makeup had been removed as well and she was clad only in an oversized _SMALLVILLE VOLLEYBALL _pullover and _NIKE_ gym shorts. Yellow wool socks covered her feet and her feet and calves. It was a complete transformation from her public debut earlier that afternoon.

"I saw and heard everything." Lois added. "Sorry for eavesdropping."

"Your hair…" Was all he could muster in response.

Lois reached up and began playing with her shortened locks.

"Mom cut it off."

It touched him how his mother had now become hers.

"She gave me layers so that it looks nice. I'll show you later."

Clark smiled and pulled her into another tight hug. She hugged him back without hesitation.

"Lois?" He started after a few seconds.

"Yes?"

"About earlier today…. Downstairs…. Ummmmm…."

"It's okay, Clark. Mom told me everything later on." Lois reassured him.

He breathed a sigh of relief into her hair.

"We're okay?" He asked.

"Yes, Clark. We're okay."

Lois broke the hug and turned to back inside the apartment, tugging Clark along behind her by the hand. Once they had shut the door, it became almost completely dark inside the tiny living space. The only light came from the TV as reruns of _I Love Lucy_ played on the screen. Martha lay curled up on the couch, covered in blankets and clutching the remote possessively to her chest. Her furrowed eyebrows and slight frown suggested that she dreamt of gremlins trying to steal the precious remote from her. The only thing that was missing from the adorable scene was Chloe sitting at Martha's feet reading the paper. Clark quickly scanned for her before turning to Lois.

"Where's Chloe?" He asked.

Lois shrugged, transfixed by Lucille Ball squishing grapes in a giant wooden wine vat.

"Still looking for a good lawyer, I guess."

He gulped, remembering what he had done earlier at the mansion.

"I'm tired." She said suddenly, walking towards the bedroom. "Come to sleep with me."

Clark's eyebrows rose.

"With you? Like in the bed?" He inquired carefully.

Lois just looked at him, confused by his reluctance.

"Yup. I sleep better when you're with me." She said matter-of-factly.

"You're like my own personal night light."

Clark chuckled at her analogy. Lois opened the bedroom door and turned on the lights before making a beeline for the bathroom, unclipping her hair as she went.

"There are extra clothes in there somewhere. I'm going to go brush my teeth and take my medicine and then I'll be back."

They disappeared into their respective rooms. Clark quickly found the men's flannel pajama pants and white T-Shirt that Chloe-for some reason- kept in the bottom drawer. He changed and hung his pants, jacket, and shirt before flopping onto the huge bed, with its covers drawn back. He just sat there; deep in thought for God knows how long before Lois came back from the bathroom and shut the lights off. She crawled along the length of the bed until arriving at his side. On instinct, Clark wrapped his arms around her and pulled the warm bedspread over her and himself. They lay chest to chest, embracing each other tightly, her head on his shoulder. There was nothing sexual about it; just two friends both in need of physical comfort and support.

After a small silence, Lois leaned up and kissed his cheek.

"Good night Clark." She murmured sleepily.

"Night, Lois." He responded.

The only sounds that followed were their steady shallow breathing and Ricky Ricardo's scolding from the TV in the living room.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Chloe tried to be as quiet as she could when she crept up the stairs and into the apartment at 12:30 AM. There had been a massive car accident on the West-bound lane of I-70 to Smallville that delayed her in getting home at least two whole hours. Thank God for Starbucks coffee.

She set her purse down on the coffee table and pried the remote out of Martha's hand. Searching for the power button for a brief second, she quickly put out the last light left in the apartment, supplied by an old _Golden Girls_ episode. Once the TV was off, the quiet voice coming from her room suddenly became crystal clear.

"Why did this have to happen to you?"

Chloe nearly dropped the remote, but definitely dropped her jaw. She grabbed her Blackberry and activated the flashlight, quickly shuffling to the half-open door of the bedroom. Clark and Lois lay in the same bed, huddled together in the center. Lois was completely asleep, knocked out by her sleep medication, but Clark was half awake and was clutching her body to himself in desperation. He held her limp head in one hand, with the other tight around her waist. He had tears on his cheeks, a clear result of whatever dream he was having.

"You don't deserve this, Lois." He whispered. "Why did they have to hurt you?"

Chloe, at a complete loss for words, slowly backed out and shut the door.

She curled up in the loveseat and let them be.


	6. Sirens

IMPORTANT BACKGROUND INFO: Lois was originally taken to Paris to be sold before backtracking to L.A., where Clark found her.

For the record, I do agree with y'all, Lana is being a bitch. It's because of the given circumstances; with Lois fallen from grace as the "strong one", she is trying to step into her shoes and distribute the "tough love". But she sucks at it. Instead of being the strong one, she's just the bitchy one. As much as I despise Lana with the burning passion of a thousand suns, in this case, she's trying to go about a good cause, but doing it in a bad way. Don't hate her…. yet…. ;)

**BOLD**= A dream or a flashback

**Chapter 6**

_**She stands with only a glass table in between her and her kidnapper, who now doubled as her molester following his recent attack on her body. Her hair had all but been ripped out of the bun, framing her face and dangling down her back messily. The red, bejeweled cocktail dress was ripped down the side and she had to support it with her right hand to keep her breasts from being exposed to the man that stood before her; in their brief scuffle that resulted in her ruined gown, he had managed to split her lip. He licks his own lips suggestively at her as she holds a broken wine bottle half-raised in self-defense. Lois is shaking in anger as she speaks up to break the silence.**_

"_**You can't do this. You won't do this. Your business will suffer if you touch me like THAT." **_

_**She spits out the final word for emphasis. Lyon just chuckles at her naivety and begins playing with the Newton's Cradle on the table; Lois breaks into a cold sweat at the device's rhythmic clicking.**_

_Click click click click_

"_**Only in Europe do virgins fetch a higher price at ze auctions. Ve are in Amerika now, my sveet. Your virginity holds no value to this particular industry."**_

_Click click click click_

"_**So what, do you normally sleep with all your whores before throwing them out to make money for you? Why are you doing this to me?" **_

_**Her anger reached an even greater height as she spoke. **_

"_**I haff never had a virgin before." He drawled in his thick Bulgarian accent.**_

"_**All off my girls haff been filthy and impure."**_

_Click click cli-_

_**He slammed his hand down onto the device, breaking it. Lois jumped slightly but held her ground.**_

"_**They disgust me." Lyon's voice dripped with disdain.**_

"_**Venn I learned off your purity, I vanted more dann anyting to be ze von to corrupt you, to steal dat pureness. But I had to vait, to contain myself; business vas und still ees more important dann desire. I vas villing to go unfulfilled for an additional von million Euros dat you vere predicted to bring in."**_

_**Lois visibly shivered at the lust in his eyes as he slowly advanced towards her.**_

"_**But since denn, tings have changed. My empire in France has been undermined und ve are being forced to relocate to another continent. Here, it matters not vether you are virgin or not; a prostitute is a prostitute und nothing more. I can und I vill have you."**_

_**Her blood had frozen. The lie that she had been relying on to keep Lyon's men away from her was now going to harm her. Thinking fast, Lois hurled the bottle at his face and made to dash for the door. He only ducked and lunged after her, successfully tackling her to the ground. He yanked her up by the waist and flung her onto the king-size bed, ripping the tattered remains of the gown off of her body. She punched and kicked at him frantically, landing several on his face and torso. He only smirked and pinned her body down with his own; both wrists were restrained by one of his huge hands.**_

"_**GET OFF ME!" She screamed over and over again while still trying to kick him.**_

"_**I like it venn dey fight back." Lyon growled perversely, his free arm snaking around her waist.**_

"_**I'm not even a virgin." Lois confessed hastily, hoping the truth would get him off of her.**_

"_**I was a huge slut in high school. I slept with half the football team." She rambled on quickly when Lyon began to lick her neck.**_

"_**I haff a hard time belieffing dat, my sveet."**_

"_**NO!" She gasped desperately, struggling harder.**_

"_**Wes Keenan! Bryan Philips! Jacob Heard! Antonio Del Moral! I slept with all of them!"**_

"_**If you haff so much experience, denn vhy are you so scared?" He drawled, continuing to touch her all over.**_

"_**Because no one's ever touched me BY FORCE‼" Lois' panic was becoming evident now; her eyes were leaking tears and she was hyperventilating.**_

"_**Don't do this." She finally begged weakly.**_

"_**It von't be so bad, loff."**_

"Lois? Lois, it's okay."

"_**No. Please, stop!"**_

"It's just a dream! Wake up, Lois!"

Clark continued to shake her until her eyes fluttered open weakly. Still partially covered by the sheets, he was holding her upright, tight to his chest with her head cradled in his large hand. Her medication had not quite worn off, so Lois was still in a sleepy state even after being shaken awake.

"Where is he?" She tried to sound forceful, but it came out as weak and terrified.

"Who?" Clark's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Lyon…. He was just here. He… he was on me…." Lois slurred out, breathing heavily at the memory.

If it was at all possible, Clark's blood boiled even more. He took the few seconds necessary to calm his raging mind before adjusting her in his arms. Her head now rested on his left shoulder, as it had the night he carried her bloody form from the mansion in L.A.

"It was just a dream." He managed soothingly to her.

Lois shook her head, trying to clear it from the fogginess of her sleep medication.

"No, it happened. After we left France…."

Clark looked down at her in concern, wanting to know what had happened to her but at the same time terrified of what he might learn.

"You were in France?" He prodded carefully.

Lois nodded slowly and continued on with frequent pauses.

"I was gonna… gonna be sold f-for like…. a million Euros or something… I don't know…."

She continued on, rambling about the tale of her abduction to Clark.

"Virgins cost more… but… I'm not a virgin… they thought I was though… but we had to leave and-and Lyon… h-h-he beat me up… and then… and then…"

She was crying now, her words getting lost in the sobs.

"Stop." Clark commanded. "You don't have to tell me anymore."

She pulled away from his grip, edging over to where the pillows were and wrapping herself around it.

"I'm so weak." She sniffled into the pillow. "Why am I so weak? How can you stand me?"

Clark just pried the pillow from her fingers and turned her to face him by the shoulders. She stared at him with eyes red from restless sleep. Her short hair hung in greasy clumps from lack of washing in her face. She shook in his grasp as though afraid he would hurt her.

"You're the strongest person I know." He responded simply causing her to blink at him in disbelief. "You're going to get through this."

She spoke only after an unsettling silence.

"Help me, Clark."

It was the first time she'd asked him for anything, and it came out shamelessly desperate.

"Of course. Come on; let's get you ready for the day."

Without protest, she allowed him to pull her sweater over her head and slide the shorts down her legs onto the floor, leaving her in just a sports bra and underwear. Lying back on the sheets, Lois allowed her grogginess to take over as Clark dressed her in blue jeans and a white wool sweater. She was so dazed that she didn't even flinch as he zipped and buttoned the jeans. When she was finally clothed for the bitter cold weather outside, Clark coaxed her into a standing position and supported her on her shaking legs.

"You okay?" He asked as he wrapped his arm around her waist for balance.

She tensed at the contact initially before relaxing at Clark's touch.

"I am now." Lois replied calmly.

He helped her walk around the bed to the door and opened it for her. She paused and winced at the bright light streaming in from the living area window before nodding at Clark to continue on. They made it to the bathroom with relative ease after that, Clark standing behind her making sure that she had a firm grip on the edge of the sink before moving about to gather shampoo and a bucket of warm water. As he washed her short hair, Martha and Chloe sat at the counter, watching through the open door with puzzled expressions. The concerned mother was the first to speak.

"Please tell me that they didn't have sex."

Chloe almost spat her coffee all over the redhead. It took her a few seconds of coughing to regain her composure before speaking sternly to Martha.

"He knows better! How dare you?"

Martha looked taken aback at her harsh response but stayed quiet and allowed her to continue.

"They're such good friends, Mrs. Kent! He would NEVER take advantage of her when she was like this. It's Clark for God's sake."

Martha only nodded as she watched her nineteen year-old gentlemen of a son brush Lois' damp hair for her.

"That's my boy." She eventually nodded in agreement before taking another sip of coffee.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Clark watched from his table with Chloe as his mother stood with Lois behind The Talon's coffee bar and retrained her on how to make lattes and frappucinos. With her hair pinned back in a messy ponytail and face devoid of make up, Lois still managed to look happy to be back at work. She nodded at every instruction Martha gave and had successfully made several drinks on the first try. Chloe calling his name was the only thing that pulled him away from watching her work. He turned back to face her at the desperation in her voice.

"Clark, they are going to come for her." She stated bluntly, emphasizing the ARE.

He nodded sadly in agreement, instantly knowing what she was talking about.

"It'll be soon. Do you have everything arranged?"

"Yes. All the pieces of the puzzle are in place. All there's left to do is wait."

No sooner than she had finished her sentence, the tell-tale sirens could be heard wailing up the street.

Chloe gulped, going pale.

"It's them." She whispered.

"I know." Clark responded grimly.

He stood up quickly and walked over to Lois at the counter. The least he could do was be there for her when they carted her away unjustly in handcuffs.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Sorry it took so long to post again. I ended up completely rewriting this chapter twice. Hope you liked it!


	7. I Love You

**This is the real chapter 7. The other one served to motivate me to actually finish this one.**

**I'd say it worked like a charm!**

**It's actually pretty long so I how y'all like it.**

**Anyway, I'm gonna try to get into the habit of updating every week or so in order to avoid such a long hiatus.**

**HERE YOU GO! ENJOY!**

**Chapter 7**

Only the lawyer was allowed into the interrogation room with Lois. All Clark could do now was sit outside the door, only a wall separating him from the rapid fire questioning of his best friend, and wait nervously for her release. That is, IF the authorities decided to release her.

He shifted to a more comfortable position on the floor and twiddled his truck keys nervously; Lana arrived in his truck at The Talon a few moments after Lois's arrest, tossing his keys at him without a word before turning to get into the silver Porsche that had followed her there…. With Lex Luthor.

For some reason, it was impossible to be angered by this fact.

Just like Lois, Lana was in need of some form of comfort. But she sure as hell wasn't getting it from him.

Money and media attention seemed to Lana's cup of tea when it came to emotional relief.

He shook his ex-girlfriend from his thoughts and began to focus on something that actually mattered. While Clark was desperately longing to know what was happening behind the closed doors, he refused to tap into his super-hearing to eavesdrop. Lois was being forced to disclose certain traumatic events of her abduction to the police, but he wanted her to tell him on his own terms. Listening in on a story not intended for his ears felt like a further violation of her already shattered privacy.

Instead, he turned his head and focused on the news debate coming from the huge flat screen in the police station lobby; he couldn't see the screen because Chloe was leaned up against the wall at the end of the hallway watching as well. The voices of Nancy Grace and Bill O'Reilly argued angrily in split-screen format on the subject of Lois's alleged homicide. The volume was turned all the way up and citizens, employees, and officers alike were crowded into the room, staring transfixed at the screen. Several people would occasionally glance back towards where Clark sat, knowing that the very topic of the televised argument was just down the hallway.

_-"I don't even understand why she is even being detained and questioned." _Came Grace's unmistakably firm voice. _"This is a young woman who was taken by force by criminal organization that has been an issue in France and Southern California for years. There is not a doubt in my mind that Miss Lane was subject to abuse since her abduction. The rights of-"_

_-"Nancy, before you assume, maybe you should get the facts in front of you first." _O'Reilly barked. Clark saw Chloe's hand clench around the empty cup of coffee she was holding.

"_The man that she killed-and I know this because they found her fingerprints on the body and the murder weapon- has no police record! Aden Jimenez was just a struggling construction worker and a husband with three kids. He had no connection with her kidnappers! What could have possessed her to kill him when he had nothing to do with her abuse and abusers? This was an act of-"_

_-"Do you see the holes in your evidence, Bill?"_ The blonde interrupted.

"_If this man was struggling financially, why was he at a brothel? Why did he attempt to strangle her if he was just there for a good time?"_

_-"Some people would consider getting repeatedly stabbed a reason to defend themselves."_

_-"Some women would consider being sexually assaulted a reason to defend themselves." _Grace quipped back smartly.

The argument halted briefly, as the man one the screen had no response for her, before she continued.

"_Deadly force is defined as physical force which, under the circumstances in which it is used, is readily capable of causing death or serious physical injury. In a situation in which this is being implemented, the victim has the right to respond back with force. It is in the United States Constitution, Bill, and therefore this woman had every right to defend her body from her attacker. Aden Jimenez was attacking her so she attacked back."_

"THANK YOU!" Chloe gasped, exasperated at the other news anchor's deliberate ignorance. Most ignored her, eyes still glued to the screen.

_-"Fascinating. But until evidence emerges that Jimenez was the attacker, Miss Lane's actions fall under the category of unprovoked, and therefore…"_

Clark stopped listening after that final comment; he reverted back to staring at the wall across from in an attempt to cool his boiling blood.

_**If only they knew…. **_He thought to himself.

A disgruntled Chloe stalked over to where he sat, clearly finished with the public dissection of her cousin's ordeal. She dropped her purse onto the ground before sliding down the wall across from Clark. They sat quietly for a few seconds, trying to ignore the loud, angry voices from the TV. Chloe let out a heavy sigh before finally speaking.

"This is such bullshit." Her voice bordered on faltering into a whimper.

"I know, Chloe." He responded soothingly.

"I remember seeing that Jimenez guy at the club; he is NOT just some innocent bystander!"

Chloe was visibly shaken at the injustice of it all.

Clark pondered for a second on whether he should tell her of his confrontation with Lex. Taking a deep breath, he decided she was one of the people who deserved to know the most, a similar verdict to that night in the hospital with his mother.

"His records have been tampered with." Clark confessed.

Chloe's eyes rolled up from staring at her lap to making contact with Clark's gaze. She didn't inquire how he knew this, or respond in any way for the matter, so he continued his explanation.

"Lex gave me the option to reveal my secret and cooperate with him in exchange for a retraction of his statement and evidence against Lois. I refused…. And he's got enough power to make me pay through Lois."

Chloe nodded, not showing any emotion on the subject of his involvement with her cousin's current situation. She calmly picked up her empty coffee cup and stared at it briefly before angrily crumbling it up and hurling it down the hallway towards the lobby; it bounced off the TV's image of Bill O'Reilly, causing the entire congregation to turn in confusion towards the frustrated blonde. Chloe ignored them and finally responded to Clark's cryptic explanation.

"What a fucking bastard." She growled, making Clark's eyebrows shoot up in shock.

"I knew that evidence couldn't be right; we both know that Jimenez was on the inside from the beginning."

Clark nodded in agreement before speaking again.

"We do know the truth Chloe. But will it be enough? I was so confident yesterday, but now, I just don't know…. Do we even have a chance to win this?"

She sadly looked into his eyes, sensing his overpowering doubt on the choice he made.

"Maybe I should go to Lex and tell him. At least that way we know Lois will be safe." He said in a defeated tone.

As much as she wanted to smack him for being so quick to admit defeat, Chloe restrained herself; there were factors in this equation that favored them and that he was not yet aware of.

"Clark, I'm gonna stop your pity party right there." She responded with confidence.

He just looked at her with a puzzled expression, daring to hope that she knew something that would tip the scale in her favor.

"Behind you, in that room, Patricia Swann is ruthlessly fighting to defend Lois's name from any further smearing and libel." Chloe said with pride.

Clark's jaw dropped in shock before he slowly gave her a weak smirk.

"You're joking right?" He asked, almost laughing at the notion that they could be that lucky.

"Nope. Patricia has a passion for two things: justice and her hatred of Lex Luthor." She smirked.

"Now that Baldie has fallen into the equation, our chance of success has increased dramatically.

-X-X-X-X-X-

"Miss Lane," Commissioner Henderson drummed his nails on the table in an attempt to ease his frustration with the blonde. "I'll ask you again, one last time…"

He paused, waiting for a response from her, but Lois remained still in her seat, arms crossed over her chest.

"Did you murder Mr. Jimenez on the evening of February 7, 2006?"

"And I'll answer yet again, Commissioner. No, I did not murder him. I was defending myself from his attack and he just so happened to die in the process."

Lois's equally irritated response fired at him as soon as he finished speaking, suggesting her eagerness to be finished with this interrogation. The Commissioner only raised his brows at her choice of words, possibly out of amusement. Nevertheless, he continued prodding for answers.

"If it truly was self-defense, then why did you flee the scene of the crime so quickly in addition to hastily hiding the body?"

Lois gulped; she didn't have a response for this one.

Patricia-her attorney-, having planned for this, spoke up on her behalf.

"Mr. Henderson, what would you have done is Lois's place? Wait for the police and explain how the blood all over your body is a result of self-defense?"

"Actually yes, Miss Swann. As a police chief, I know what to do in a situation like this." Henderson quipped back.

Patricia only smirked and continued.

"Exactly. You are quite possibly the most prepared person for the ordeal that my client has been through. You've had proper training and are used to stress. However, Miss Lane is not like you. Miss Lane was subjected to months of physical and emotional strain before the events of February 7 transpired, putting her at an even further disadvantage."

Lois grinned smugly as she twirled her short hair and Henderson's eyes widened at the depth of Patricia's explanation.

"In short, Lois was in shock and was therefore not thinking clearly. She was also injured and did what anyone do in her situation; go get help. You are asking for a logical explanation of her actions when she was incapable of thinking clearly at the time."

Henderson threw his arms up in frustration.

"Be that as it may; there is no evidence that the victim was using deadly force that deserved an even deadlier force in response."

"THAT'S COMPLETE CRAP!" Lois barked angrily.

It was the loudest she had spoken in weeks.

"I was there in that hellhole. I had run ins with Jimenez every goddamn day, yet you're going to sit there and tell me that I had no right to defend myself against that fucking pig!"

"Miss Lane, the evidence we have suggests that YOU are the attacker." Henderson roared back

"Until further notice, until you have proof of that the antithesis is true, all fingers are pointed at you!"

Swann cleared her throat, causing the two to realize just how close their faces were. Lois scooted back in her chair, away from the commissioner, and began to stare silently at her feet. Patricia spoke after a few more seconds.

"Your claim is false commissioner."

He glared angrily at her but didn't speak up.

"We don't need evidence of our own. We merely need to disprove the claims presented against my client and doubt will be cast over the prosecutors."

Swann and Henderson were too busy glaring daggers at each other to notice that Lois had begun to cry. It wasn't a sobbing cry; tears were silently falling down her cheeks into her lap and she sniffled every now and then.

"He hurt me." She explained quietly.

The lawyer and the cop turned their heads toward her, surprised by her finally speaking up.

"He did it…. So many times and-and I knew h-h-he wanted to kill me. I aggravated him cuz-cuz I fought back…. And I-I-I didn't d-do as he said like the others and…."

She was rambling now. Patricia walked over to her from her stance against the wall and wrapped Lois in a hug. She immediately hugged her back and cried into her shoulder. Patricia slowly lifted her head and glared back at William Henderson after a minute or so.

"You know, the justice system is extremely corrupted, considering that you people have the nerve to label her the villain." She spat.

"I'm just doing my job." Henderson defended crisply.

Patricia nodded.

"As am I. It's been almost an hour, Commissioner; I think this Q&A is over. We'll be leaving now."

The two women slowly stood up to leave, but Henderson only chuckled.

"Bail's set at $25,000. You're not going anywhere until then."

The lawyer raised her eyebrows before yanking her checkbook from her red Prada purse, effectively erasing the grin from the older man's face.

-X-X-X-X-X-

The Kent farm may have appeared peaceful that night, but quite the contrary was true. Well, at least it was busy on the ground floor.

Chloe sat on the kitchen island surrounded by several stacks of documents as she tried to retrieve footage from the security cameras of the mansion where Lois was held. She was unaware that she was continually chugging from her coffee mug every minute or so and oblivious the fact that it was constantly being refilled for her. Patricia Swann sat in the living room on the loveseat. In one hand she held a courtroom file, the other a croissant that she was absently munching on. Every time she finished one, another would appear on the plate on the armchair. And lastly, Martha Kent was flying all over the kitchen, going in between baking food for Patricia as well as filling up Chloe's coffee while being on the phone with her connection to the Los Angeles court system the entire time.

Upstairs was less hectic to say the least.

Lois, having just showered and taken her sleeping pills, lay curled up under the covers of the bed in the master bedroom; Martha had let her and Clark have it instead once they explained how Lois slept better with Clark. Her eyes were drooping as the medicine began to take effect, but she was fighting to stay awake. She'd sleep when Clark had finished his chores and was there to protect her. Lois finally resorted to sitting straight up against the headboard in an effort to stay awake. As she began to drift off despite all her efforts, the sound of footsteps in the hallway reached her ears and she jerked her head up.

"Clark?" She asked sleepily.

He was standing in the doorway but her grogginess was making it hard for her to see.

"Lois, why are you still awake? Have you taken your meds?"

She nodded heavily and then stretched her arms out to him.

"I'm sleepy. Come to bed."

As shady as her implications would sound to a stranger, Clark only smiled and walked over to the bed. He sat on the edge of the huge bed and allowed her to fall into him, her arms draping over his shoulders.

She sighed in content and he laughed at her sluggishness.

"Lois, do you think the medicine is strong enough?"

"I would have to say yes." Her answer was muffled by his shoulder.

He leaned them back into the mattress and covered their bodies with the sheets. Her arms were still wrapped loosely around his shoulders as they both started to drift off.

And then….

"Clark?"

"Yes?"

"If I go to prison, will you visit me?"

"Yes. I'll visit every day."

"Would you bring me my bunny slippers?"

Clark chuckled at the idea.

"Absolutely. And I'd bring you your Whitesnake CDS."

"Clark, kick Lex's ass for me?"

"Anything for you Lo."

She laughed a tired and groggy laugh into his chest for a while before speaking again.

"I love you."

And then she was asleep. Clark, completely shocked that Lois Lane would ever say that to him didn't respond. He just stared at the ceiling for a while in deep thought before finally drifting off.

-X-X-X-X-X-

**BTW, William Henderson is the current Police Commissioner of Metropolis according to the Superman Comics. **

**Yeah, I did my research. **

**GO ME!**


	8. UnApologetic

**It might be a while before I post following these next two or three chapters. My mother is having surgery on July 5****th**** to remove an ovarian tumor and she's going to need my help for a few weeks to a month. I'll try and get as many up as possible before then, but at the same time, I don't want to hinder the quality of the story. **

**Pray for her and wish her luck!**

**Chapter 8**

It had been over a month, but the big day was now looming over the horizon. All the media attention and speculation that Lois had received would likely come to an abrupt halt following the results of tomorrow's trial. Either that or the desperate swarming of the reporters and photographers would worsen; it was already a huge pain in the butt for Lois to go anywhere public. It was at the farm where all the media attention ceased and she could resume life as if nothing happened. As if she was not the center of one of the most scandalous crimes in recent years; here, she was just Lois.

That was what she needed right now; to have some feelings of normalcy still prominent in her life.

That evening, Lois was doing just that. While Mom, her cousin, and her lawyer meticulously reviewed their evidence again and again in the kitchen, Lois and Clark sat on the highest peak of the roof facing the barn. The late March air was much warmer now that they were nearing spring, but it was still slightly chilly. They wore light jackets, sweats, boots, and wool hats while sipping hot cocoa to keep warm. For once, Lois let her hair down, as opposed to the messy bun that had now become prominent on top of her head. It had grown quite a bit since she had chopped it all off, now reaching beyond her shoulders. They had been sitting in silence, sipping their cocoa, for a while. Both were completely content with just the breeze whispering past them.

"It's really happening." She whispered to herself. Clark's enhanced hearing picked it up, but pretended he that he couldn't hear her.

Lois turned to face him this time, clearly addressing him and wanting his input.

"Tomorrow, everything is going to change." She said breathlessly.

"Are you scared?" Clark looked straight ahead as he said it, part of him not wanting to know just how much this whole ordeal was pressuring her.

She thought for a second, turning her head back to the western sky but keeping her body facing him, before answering him.

"No, actually."

Clark's eyebrows raised and he finally rotated his head to face her. She did the same, so that the made eye contact at the exact same moment.

"Mom and Chloe and Patricia have done such a thorough job of rounding up every piece of evidence in my favor. Even if we do lose and I go…."

She paused and took a deep breath.

"Even if I do go to prison, it won't be for lack of trying."

"We aren't going to lose. You aren't going to prison." Clark corrected calmly with a warm smile.

"This will all be over soon and everything will be back to normal."

Lois frowned at him in response. She gulped down the rest of her cocoa before replying.

"I'll never be 'normal' again, Clark." She muttered just loud enough for a normal human to hear.

"Lois, I'm sorry." Clark apologized hastily as he shifted to face her.

"I didn't mean it like that. It'll just…. You'll be able to…."

Lois only chuckled as he struggled to explain himself.

"It's okay. I just meant that after this whole thing is blown over, after everything's calmed down, I'll still be…. Different from you guys. If you know what I mean."

Clark nodded and placed his hand on hers, hoping to convey that he understand exactly how she felt.

"I think I know what you mean, Lo."

She stared at his hand for a few moments before looking sheepishly up at him again.

"Why are you such a good friend? To me especially?"

Clark shrugged.

"You really need one right now. I'm trying to be better about being there for my friends." He answered, thinking back to the different times he had blown off Pete, Chloe, Lana, and even Lex.

Lois only nodded thoughtfully, staring at the insolated mug in her right hand. A spilt second later, she hurled it towards the barn in frustration. It bounced off the fence in front of the porch and shattered on the ground. They both stared at the remains of the cup in the dead grass for a few seconds before Lois spoke.

"I don't deserve it, though." She stated, covering her face in shame.

"I was such a bitch to you when we first met, even though you did so much to find Chloe."

He didn't respond; just waited patiently for her to continue.

"I wish there were words to express how bad I feel and how sorry I am for being the way I was. I mean, last year was so hard for you; Alicia's death and the meteor shower…. I'm just so sorry, Clark."

He had already pulled her into a hug at that point. It was silent for a minute before Clark finally responded.

"That doesn't matter now. I was never mad at you, you know. In fact, it was kind of fun arguing with you all the time."

She laughed into his shoulder at that.

"It's okay, Lois. You make life interesting here." Clark finished with a chuckle and Lois mentally sighed in relief that he didn't hate her.

She held on to him for a while longer, looking out at the road that led to the farm. After a minute or so, she drew back, still staring at the gravel path as an SUV pulled onto the property.

"Is that who I think it is?" She snarled.

Clark followed her gaze, eyes widening as he recognized the Maroon GMC Envoy.

"Yeah. It's her." He replied blankly, only faintly registering Lois's tightening grip on his hand.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Lana took a few deep breaths to gathering her nerve before stepping out of the car and heading for the back porch. She was completely lost in her own thoughts, so much so that she didn't notice the two people silently watching her from the roof of the house. Wringing her hands as she approached the house, Lana studied the scene inside the living and dining area through the back door. Chloe and the lawyer were on the couch organized files and discussing the case in an animated fashion. A laptop sat on the island of the kitchen, surrounded by documents, yet the user was nowhere in sight. Martha Kent suddenly came down the stairs in her white nightgown and slippers, making a beeline for the abandoned laptop. It was then, at the sight of Mama Kent, that Lana relaxed enough to knock on the door.

All heads snapped up and looked at her immediately following the loud noise. While Chloe and Patricia went back to their analysis, Martha walked up to the door, greeting Lana with a smile.

"Hi, Lana." She opened the door and let her in.

"It's been a while since I've seen you, sweetheart. Would you like something to drink?"

Lana smiled appreciatively at being so warmly received, but she declined politely as she was hear so a specific purpose.

"No thank you. I stuck my foot in my mouth a while ago and I really need to apologize and make amends for it." She said honestly.

Martha nodded before replying.

"That's very mature of you; Chloe's in there if you want to talk to her."

She smiled and patted her on the back before patting her on the back before going back to the laptop. Lana turned nervously to the pair on the couch and walked over to them.

"….this is a really good counter-claim. No matter what, we absolutely have to use the information on page 12. It'll give us a lot of leverage above the prosecution." Chloe said as she highlighted a certain section of writing in yellow.

"This one is important too." Swann replied, pulling a pamphlet from under one of the stacks.

"If we use it at the right time, it completely negates the central contention of the prosecutors. But it needs to come in later in the trial though; that way when we disprove them, it will seem to the jury that their entire argumentation has been for nothing."

"Chloe?" Lana asked a little louder than necessary.

Chloe looked up from the documents in her hands at the brunette standing at the end of the coach where she sat.

"Hey Lana, look now's really not a good time." She said calmly, trying to let her know that she didn't want to talk in the nicest way possible.

"We still have to go over the evidence and case structure a few more times."

"Actually," Patricia piped in, "We're good for now Chloe. Thanks for all your help this past month; we've gone over everything so much that it's basically flawless. Y'all can go ahead if you want."

She gathered up all the papers and retired to the kitchen with Martha, all the while Chloe and Lana remained silent.

"Do you mind if I have a seat?" The brunette finally asked.

"Yeah." Chloe said shortly, moving a pillow out of the way for her to have a seat.

They sat in awkward silence for another minute before Lana broke the ice again.

"I haven't seen you in a while. You haven't been at the apartment."

Chloe nodded.

"Yeah. I've been here helping with the case and being there for my cousin."

"You know," Lana interjected, "you both could have stayed there with me. You didn't have to move out. I know it's crowded at The Talon, but it would've been fine."

Chloe winced, knowing she was about to say was going to sting.

"Lois didn't want to be around you."

Lana sighed.

"I didn't mean to be so callous towards her." She defended.

"I was just trying to be strong, like Lois has been. She's always been the tough one, so I figured that's what she needed; tough love."

The blonde rolled her eyes before snappily retorting back.

"Lana, no offense, but you suck at being 'the strong one'. It came across as 'the jealous one' or 'the bitchy one'. Whatever you were going for, you completely missed."

Chloe didn't mean to sound so harsh, but she had been holding her anger towards Lana in for over a month.

Lana bit her lip in deep thought before continuing.

"I agree. Towards the end, I got frustrated and bitchy. I don't know why though. Maybe because I didn't really know how to handle the situation, but I'm really sorry that I put her through that."

The two girls looked at each other pointedly, waiting for the other person to speak up. Chloe was the first to cave.

"Look, I'm not angry with you and I really appreciate you coming out here to set things straight, but I'm not the person you need to apologize to. You need to talk to Lois and Clark."

"Okay, where are they?" Lana asked, her stomach fluttering at the idea of finally confronting and apologizing the two. "Can you tell them I'm here?"

Chloe smiled weakly, feeling guilt for what she was about to say.

"Lana, they know you're here. The fact that they haven't come down to see you yet tells me that they're not ready to talk to you."

The brunette nodded slowly, silently despairing over the two relationships that she could have very likely ruined forever.

-X-X-X-X-X-

The broken mug in the grass caught Lana's attention the second time she passed it, this time on the way back to her car. She regarded it silently for a few seconds before it hit her.

"_Could they really be…."_ She thought as she turned toward the house and looked up at the roof.

Sure enough, the people that she had made this journey for were sitting on the roof of the yellow house, facing each other and conversing as though the top of the farmhouse was a perfectly normal spot to spend the evening. She didn't hesitate to call to him.

"Clark, I'm really sorry for everything."

Both of their heads snapped to the direction of her voice.

"I was being a big fucking bitch and as much I may tell myself that I was doing the right thing, it was completely insensitive of me."

She emphasized the 'big fucking bitch' part in hopes of winning Lois over as well. It was awkwardly silent afterwards; the people on the roof stared down at the woman on the ground and she stared back at them, waiting for a response. Clark made the first move, sliding down the slant of the roof onto the porch cover and waiting for Lois to follow suit. She did eventually, hesitantly dropping down to the lower level as Clark helped her like a gentlemen. They both clambered over the railing onto the ground and turned to walk over to where Lana stood.

"I'm sorry." She whispered to Lois this time. "I really am."

Lois didn't say anything. She paused before reluctantly reaching out and hugging Lana. The two women stood there in a tight embrace, Lois trying to fight back tears while Lana stared back at Clark, waiting for a sign of his approval. He just nodded reassuringly at her.

"It's all forgiven now Lana."

-X-X-X-X-X-

Lois had never been so furious in her life.

Just over 12 hours after her heartfelt apology, Lana was displaying to everyone in the court that it was complete bullshit.

She stood with her arm hooked with Lex Luthor's-whom everyone knew was a witness for the prosecution- laughing and talking animatedly with other well-to-do patrons attending the trial in the back of the courtroom. No doubt they were discussing Lex's imminent victory over her claims of self-defense. When Lana excused herself from the room, Lois stood and made her way down the aisle from the front of the room after her, muttering about getting a drink of water.

While everyone questioned her sudden departure so close to the start of the trial, Clark said nothing; he knew what her real intentions were.

She found her quickly in the restroom, alone, applying Chap Stick in front of a mirror.

"When did you become such a backstabber?" Lois barked as she slammed the door open.

Lana jumped slightly but stayed calm.

"Lois, you need to calm down. People already think you're crazy."

She and Lois were now face to face, but neither woman was willing to back down.

"I guess when people like you and Luthor and going around spreading lies, people get the wrong idea." Lois snarled in response.

"You were lying last night; you weren't being a big fucking bitch, you are a big fucking bitch."

Just like that, Lois stormed out the door again, leaving Lana Lang behind both figuratively and literally.

-X-X-X-X-X-

**I feel the need to emphasize Lois and Clark holding hands because I just realized something awesome. Lois is left-handed and Clark is right-handed. It just seems like they were made to hold hands, you know what I mean? **

**Sorry if I sound crazy and obsessive. I just think it's kind of neat!**


	9. Trial Part 1

**I have no idea when part 2 will be ready, but for now, here's the first part of the trial of Lois Lane.**

**Drumroll please!**

**Chapter 9**

"Lois, you're shaking. Are you sure you're okay?" Chloe Sullivan carefully asked as she squeezed her cousin's hand.

They were back inside the courtroom, things finally beginning to calm down in light of the criminal trial of the year. Chloe was trying to sooth the dangerously irate Lois as best she could in the short amount of time they had. She squatted awkwardly-trying to be modest in her pencil skirt-in the aisle next to her, holding her cousin's gaze, so that Lois wouldn't be aware of the hundreds of eyes fixated on her.

Judging her.

Silently accusing her.

Most importantly, she wanted to distract Lois from the fact that Viktor Lyon was staring hungrily at her as he was walked to the witness room adjacent to the court.

"I'm fine." Lois spat after a few seconds. "I'm fucking furious, but I'm fine."

Chloe nodded, briefly glaring up at the balcony where Lana sat, before she continued.

"It doesn't matter okay. Not anymore; what matters now is you need to focus and be confident. You need to show these people that you are not guilty and that you have nothing to fear."

Lois closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She used her free hand to feel around for Clark's hand on the wooden table of the Defendant's bench. When she got a hold of him, she squeezed for good measure and felt herself relax substantially. When she opened her eyes, Chloe's green ones were no longer holding her gaze. The younger blonde's attention was focused down the length of the aisle toward the entrance of the courtroom. Lois followed her gaze slowly and her stomach sub sequentially lurched when she realized just exactly what Chloe was staring at.

The General and her little sister Lucy were making their way towards the bench. The fact that her father had arrived to support her like he promised was not shocking to her; no, it was the sight of her battered sister that made her blood run cold. Lucy limped slowly across the wood floor, a heel-face turn in comparison to her usual half-skip stride. The sound of the cane her sister was leaning for support thudded dully as in made contact with the floor, getting slightly louder as she neared. In addition to the brace on her right leg, Lucy's form was forced into an erect posture by the back brace and spinal halo secured to her upper body.

Lois shuddered as a disturbing thought materialized in her brain; she and Lucy were both broken, in their own unique way of course.

She let go of Clark's hand and stood up and walked briskly over to meet her family, Chloe trailing behind her. As delicately as she could manage, despite the mama bear urge to squeeze the life out of her baby sister, Lois enveloped Lucy in a hug. She returned it with only her left arm, maintaining her death grip on the cane to avoid falling over.

"Luce, what happened to you?" She murmured for only her sister to hear.

"I was really stupid, Lois." Lucy hesitantly responded. "I heard that they found you so I rushed over from Europe as quickly as I could. I was driving way too fast on the way to Smallville."

Lois shuddered and pulled out of the hug, holding Lucy at arm's length, as she made the connection.

_Chloe said she got home so late that night because of a massive accident on the Interstate en route to Smallville…._

Lois turned slightly to make eye contact with her cousin. Chloe only nodded sadly as soon as they made eye-contact. Even though she already knew, for some reason, she had to hear it from her sister's mouth.

"Were you driving down 1-70 at about 10 o'clock at night?"

Lucy bit her lip and nodded.

"I'm sorry Lo. I lost control and the car wrapped around a guardrail. I was in a coma for two weeks before I came to. You really needed Dad to be there for you, but I took him away because I was being an idiot."

Lucy's confession was like the final piece to the puzzle. Sam Lane's visits had been so short and so sporadic in the last two months. In addition to that, he was so quiet and withdrawn on the few occasions that he managed to stop by to see how she was doing. Whenever the topic of Lucy came up, the subject was rapidly changed. It was like he was afraid to talk to her, that he might break her with his words. Whenever he left, Lois usually broke down into sobs, ranting to Mrs. Kent and Clark about how her own father was afraid to talk to her because she was so emotionally weak. While she always ended up curled up next to the two of them in the master bedroom, somehow talking and laughing like a normal family, one thought never left her mind; Sam Lane didn't know how to be a father to her, and right then, she needed it most.

Now that fear was all gone.

He had just been torn between supporting his handicapped baby girl and protecting his oldest from further physiologically scarring trauma.

Lois turned to her father and threw her arms around him. She hadn't hugged him in years.

"Thank you, Daddy."

"I didn't do anything special, sweetheart." Came the General's raspy voice, "I don't deserve any kind of thanks."

She pulled back and smiled weakly.

"You've been there for me; as best as you knew how. And now you're here today. Now I know that even if I lose, it won't be so bad."

Sam shook his head in disbelief at her optimism, smirking a little.

"Lo, I didn't know you were this modest. Of course you're going to win."

Lois couldn't help but laugh a little; that was the closest thing to praise that she'd ever received from her father.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Lois and Clark weren't even listening to the judge as she read the case profile and court proceedings out loud. Instead, they whispered quietly back and forth, trying to diffuse the tension further before Lois had to actually get up and defend her case.

"She's kind of a porker." Lois muttered, nodding her head in the direction of the overweight brunette that was speaking to the entire court from behind her podium.

Clark snorted quietly and could have sworn that he saw Patricia crack a tiny grin as well.

"Not everyone works out like you, Lois." He retorted quietly.

"Well I'm thinking it would benefit her to take a page out of my book."

"Oh my God, you're horrible."

Lois glared at him from the corner of her eye, simultaneously raising her left eyebrow.

"Actually, I think the word you are looking for is 'hilarious', Smallville." She corrected matter-of-factly.

Clark only smirked.

"That's a bit of a stretch. It's pretty obvious that you act the way you do to hide your intense attraction to me."

"Oh spare me!" She hastily replied, earning brief glance from nearby audience members.

"Why else would you be holding my hand under the table? Because you don't want anyone to know."

Lois gulped and pretended that she didn't hear him, instead focusing on the end of Judge McIntosh's rundown of procedure. She could feel him gazing at her inquiringly , but ignored him.

"Miss Lane, you may now come forward for questioning." The woman at the very front announced, addressing her politely.

"Thank you, Your Honor." Lois responded before she stood to make her way to the front of the room.

Very reluctantly, she released Clark's hand.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Lois had been surprisingly calm up until this point. The questions that had been fired at her were generic enough; what had happened that night, how she ended up in that house, the names of the alleged abductors, yada yada yada. She'd answered them truthfully and without hesitation. Patricia Swann was practically beaming at her from the bench.

And then, he went there.

The question was bound to be asked eventually, but Lois didn't expect it to double as an accusation.

"Miss Lane, why were you employed at The Windgate Gentlemen's Club when you are clearly underage?" The prosecutor fired at her, dropping his nonchalant demeanor that was present only seconds ago.

Lois frowned, but responded quickly.

"I wasn't employed there. I was there to gather information on one of Senator Kent's possible opponents."

"So he employs teenagers do to his research? I find that hard to believe."

"It was a personal favor, not a hired job." Lois said through gritted teeth.

The lawyer only chuckled at her. Lois felt her eye twitch in fury.

"Right, because that's just what people do these days; favors."

"Well that's at least what decent people do." She snapped back quickly.

He walked up to where she sat, glaring at the supposed audacity of her last statement

"Oh that's rich, coming from a stripper and a prostitute."

"If you did any research whatsoever, you'd discover that I was never on the payroll for the Windgate. I didn't wo-"

"However," The lawyer barked as he slammed his hand down on the railing of the witness box. "You are not denying the fact that you were involved in the prostitution business from early November of 2005 to early February of 2006! That is a serious offence Miss Lane. That alone would have landed you in federal prison."

Lois was shaking in fury and she opened her mouth to retaliate, but once again he cut her off.

"What is your relationship with your father?"

Lois balked at him.

"Excuse me?"

"Do you have a good relationship with your father, Miss Lane?"

Shaking her head in confusion at the sudden change in direction, she answered.

"I would say so."

The lawyer smiled ever so slightly, and Lois knew that he was going to tear that statement to pieces.

"Then why did you run away from home during your senior year of high school?"

"My cousin was missing. I had to try to find her."

"But then why didn't you return home once Chloe Sullivan was discovered to be alive and well?"

Lois gulped and tucked her hair behind her ears nervously. She didn't have a response for that one.

The interrogator continued on smugly once he had deemed that she had enough time to answer.

"You see, we know that you have always been at ends with your father. There is a list of things you've done just to spite him; started smoking, dated boys that he didn't approve of, even got yourself kicked out of college, all in the name of pissing dear old Dad off."

Lois was pleading silently with her father in the audience, trying to tell him with her eyes that it was a lie; at least the college part was.

He was now standing in the center of the room, staring Lois down but clearly addressing the congregation as he spoke.

"Why should this be any different? It's all an act of defiance to you, Lois. Only this time, you took a huge leap and did something risky; something risky that you later regretted. And when you finally couldn't stand to be whore anymore, murder seemed to be the only way out. Kill a client while the boss expects you to be gone all night, and you've got plenty of time to get the Hell out of there before anyone even realizes that you've left for good. Isn't that right, Miss Lane?"

As he finished, Lois could literally feel everyone's eyes shift from the Prosecutor from Hell onto her. She merely held the man's gaze, while nervously smoothing the fabric of her pant suit, and replied coolly, yet loudly.

"I'm going to say this one last time; I was taken against my will and forced into sexual slavery."

She paused and shifted her eyes over everyone in the room. Her father had averted his eyes, unable to look at her now that his worst fear had been confirmed. Lucy had gone pale and looked to be on the verge of tears. Martha Kent, who had seated herself next to Lois's family and behind her son, wrapped her sister in an awkward hug. Chloe and Patricia cringed, despite having heard the story over and over again. Lana up in the balcony was leaning against the railing on her elbow, clearly intrigued by the proceedings on the ground floor. When she finally looked back to where Clark sat, her willpower to continue increased. His eyes were sparkling as he held her gaze and he smiled weakly at her, encouraging her to continue.

Lois refocused and spoke again.

"You may be trying to paint a picture of me as the villain and Jimenez as the victim, but I assure you, it's the exact opposite. I suffered the worst kind of abuse at the hands of Aden Jimenez and, yes, the glorified French diplomat Viktor Lyon. The scars on my body may have healed, but the ones etched into my psyche will not heal as quickly. These men are the real villains, and they will be brought to justice."

She stood as soon as she finished and faced the judge.

"Your Honor, I am done making my point. If the prosecution has no more questions, I'd like to take my seat."

"No, we're done here." Her interrogator answered arrogantly and went back to his respective bench.

Lois did the same, receiving hugs from everyone there when she arrived.

-X-X-X-X-X-

Patricia Swann's interrogation of Lyon did little to advance the case of Lois's innocence. His answer to literally every question involved something about being a European diplomat prohibiting him from involvement in such shady dealings. Frustrated, Patricia retired Lyon to the audience, where he proceeded to gaze lustfully at Lois's figure from behind.

"I'm going to kill him." Lois muttered to Clark as he stood to take Lyon's place in the Witness box.

"I'll gladly help you with that." He quickly quipped, earning a smirk from Lois.

They got nowhere with Clark as well. He had well backed up answers and remained calm the entire time. So far it was a tedious stalemate, with neither side at an advantage.

Patricia quickly gathered necessary files and evidence in her hands as Lex Luthor was called up to the front of the room. Lois and Clark smirked hopefully, while Chloe let out an exasperated sigh.

"We're fucked." The tiny blonde growled at the site of the bald billionaire.

Swann chuckled quietly, causing all three heads to swivel around in her direction.

"Chloe, I find your lack of faith disturbing."

She stood and made her way to the front and center of the courtroom.

"I know what I'm doing."

Once she began speaking, it was as if the animosity between Lex and Patricia did not exist. She civilly asked basic details of his involvement in the case at hand and he calmly responded. It wasn't until she began incorporating evidence into her questions that the tension of the room skyrocketed.

"Mr. Luthor, you were the first to think of gaining access to Mr. Jimenez's police records, is that correct?"

"Yes. We were in Los Angeles when I came across the knowledge of Mr. Jimenez's murder, so I thought I'd look into his records."

"Uh huh," Patricia mused. "And, how were you able to get ahold of these files."

"Friends at Court System in L.A."

Patricia nodded at Lex before turning to the prosecution.

"May I see Mr. Jimenez's records, please?"

The state lawyers rifled through their documents before presenting her with the requested file. She examined it with mock thoughtfulness before continuing.

"When was this accessed?"

"The day after the murder." Lex responded, cutting off the prosecution.

"Oh, so you think that this is Mr. Jimenez's legitimate police and citizen records? Says he is a construction worker, has a perfect record, avid volunteer in community service, and has a wife and kids; is this information the truth?"

Patricia's skeptical eyes bored into Lex's as she waited for a response.

"I have no reason to believe that it's false."

She paused…. And then…..

"I do, Mr. Luthor. You see, I was on the jury for Mr. Jimenez's trial on the case of his alleged assault and battery of a young woman and involvement in an underground prostitution organization. I have his real not tampered with records in this folder right here."

There was a collective gasp from most of the people watching. Chloe actually started laughing into her scarf. Patricia smirked at the disappearance of Lex's confident demeanor as she opened her file and read it out loud.

"On May 12, 2005, Mr. Jimenez was tried for the crimes listed above and convicted of assault and battery. He was sentenced to 6 months of community service-which he never finished- and a $5000 fine."

In the now silent court, Swann's voice boomed menacingly.

"Afterwards, he was seen getting into a lime green Mercedes with not one but TWO alleged prostitutes and driving off with them while screaming 'Fuck the police!'"

Several, including Lois and Clark, openly chuckled at that last part.

Patricia rounded on the red faced Lex to ask one more final, condemning question but the judge beat her to it.

"Mr. Luthor, you can remove yourself from my courtroom immediantly! Bailiff, escort him out and read him his rights. There will be no more perjury in this court!"

Lois threw back her head and smiled confidently as the Baldie was taken from the room; a newfound sense of hope consumed her.

_Oh my God! _She thought. _We have a chance! We might actually win this!_

-X-X-X-X-X-

**TO BE CONTINUED….. with cookies! Just kidding, but that would totally be awesome though!**


End file.
